OCC Rejects Zerohash’s US Trust Bank Application

Morgan Stanley’s wealth and investment management businesses had $9.3 trillion in client assets as of the fourth quarter of 2025. The proposed national trust bank would bring digital asset custody, trading, settlement and staking infrastructure into the group, reflecting efforts by major Wall Street banks to accelerate the development of their own crypto-finance infrastructure.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency received Morgan Stanley Digital Trust’s application on February 18, 2026, and granted preliminary conditional approval on June 18. The institution cannot begin operations until it meets the OCC’s opening requirements. For its first three years, it must maintain at least $50 million in Tier 1 capital, with at least half held in eligible liquid assets, as well as sufficient funds to cover 180 days of operating expenses.

Zerohash has provided banks, brokerages and fintech companies with infrastructure for cryptocurrency trading, stablecoin payments and custody since 2017, and can now operate across 51 U.S. jurisdictions. The GENIUS Act, signed into law in the United States on July 18, 2025, requires payment stablecoins to be backed 1:1 by highly liquid assets such as U.S. dollars, making a federal trust charter an important route for companies seeking to expand across state lines.

OCC records show that the application for Zerohash National Trust Bank was received on March 2, 2026, and the company formally announced it on March 4. If approved, the bank would provide digital-asset and fiat custody, staking, transfer agency and stablecoin management under the OCC's direct supervision. Zerohash previously raised $104 million in September 2025 at a $1 billion valuation, but the charter application has not yet been approved.

A national trust bank charter from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) allows a company to conduct fiduciary activities under federal oversight, but not to accept deposits or obtain FDIC insurance. After launching Bitcoin, Ether and Solana ETPs, Morgan Stanley is further strengthening its in-house custody and trading infrastructure.

The OCC received the application on February 18, 2026. Morgan Stanley Digital Trust plans to offer digital-asset custody, buying and selling, swaps, transfers and fiduciary staking services, though the filing did not disclose its capitalization. The OCC granted preliminary conditional approval on June 18, but the company must meet pre-opening requirements before it can formally begin operations.